The entertainment I'm paying for is to see two teams of some of the best baseball players in the world play the game that I love. I'm there to see Chris Sale pitch, Adam Dunn crush a 500-foot homer, etc., I'm not there to see Joe West call balls and strikes or Angel Hernandez ump over at 1st base. Their job is to stay hidden as much as possible and to get the calls right so the game has some semblance of of legitimacy.

I agree that this system is pretty silly, but I don't see why anyone would actively want the league to ignore technological advancements that would make the sport better.

I completely agree that you're there to see the players, and not notice the umps.
I understand that the technology of gloves, shoes, etc. for the players has advanced, but I'm perfectly okay with the umpire's eyes and reflexes being the primary tools of his trade. I know I probably come off as a Luddite to some, and who knows what to others.

I remember the Don Majkowski play quite well. The ref blew the call. As a fan, life goes on. I was only an observer to the event, I was hardly involved.
I guess if the players, owners, and umpires want the replay, they'll get it. They're the ones involved in the events.

I say they should only allow the minimum if the call is overturned. So for your Alexei example, he would get 1st, and that's it. No speculating on how far he'd have gotten if it was fair. That's kinda foolish, sandlotish. So it's up to the manager to challenge it if he feels Alexei won't get an extra base it if he gets more swings.

To summarize:

1. Alexei hits a foul ball down the LF line where the LFielder slips and comes no where near it. The foul ball ruling is challenged, then overturned. Ruling- SINGLE.

2. Runner on 3rd, 0 out. A hitter hits a line drive trapped by the center fielder, ruled a catch, leaving him down long enough for the runner to tag and score. The manager challenges the out call, and it is overturned. Ruling- SINGLE, RUNNER REMAINS ON 3RD. Still 0 out.

3. Runners on 1st and 2nd. A ground ball is hit to the 2nd baseman, he throws to 1st, runner is out. On the throw, runners advance, then the 1st baseman throws to 3rd to get the runner there. The 3rd baseman misses it, causing both runners to score.

Manager challenges the out call, and it is overturned. Ruling- SAFE AT 1ST, BASES NOW LOADED.

I completely disagree with this entire post. A player tags up and scores on a trapped ball, but has to go back to 3rd if the play is ruled a hit? That makes zero sense.

I don't know why they need these challenge flags...that just adds to the delay (it is ridiculous in the NFL). Just have a guy in the booth watching the plays. HE can signal to stop play if he needs to look at something twice.
And to the managers get full replays in the dugout - or will they put a coach in the pressbox on a TV monitor. YOu can't count on these stadium screens...I was at Safeco last week, and sometimes they show the replay, and sometimes they don't.

So if he tags up, he can only score if the bases were loaded. No ****ing way.

Well, letting umpires speculate on what would have happened if the right call was made, creates a slippery slope. Any manager can then argue otherwise, because now we're talking about a hypothetical situation. So your way can cause all types of chaos.

My way, there is a set rule which only allows the minimum benefit to the team that gets a called overturned. No arguments.